One defendant sentenced to life in gruesome 2014 Taco Bell murder

MONTGOMERY, AL (WSFA) - It's the first signs of justice following a barbaric killing in East Montgomery.

Vettia Roche's body was left in the drive thru after being horrifically beaten and shot to death following her shift as manager at the Taco Bell on Atlanta Highway in 2014.

Two of the three suspects in Roche's murder, Renauldous Chisholm and Kenneth Temple, worked for her at the fast food restaurant, and asked to leave early, which Roche gr anted.

"They came back knowing she would be the only person closing out that night," stated Montgomery District Attorney Daryl Bailey.

Bailey said Chisholm, Temple, and Temple's cousin Gacolby Green planned an armed robbery of the night cash deposit.

"When she came out, they confronted her and probably some type of struggle ensued ," Bailey said describing the armed robbery. "They were armed with a gun and a carjack, which they used to beat her and shoot her, and take the money from the business."

Bailey calls this murder one of the most gruesome he's seen as a veteran prosecutor, adding Roche was beaten in the head with the metal carjack.  Investigators say Chisholm pulled the trigger.

Due to the sheer brutality of Roche's untimely death, the District Attorney's Office was seeking the death penalty in Chisholm's capital murder case – something Roche's family strongly opposed.

"It was extremely important to the victim's family," Bailey said of the ultimate outcome of Chisholm's case. "They didn't want to live through a trial. This is a case where we were seeking the death penalty, and they were very opposed to the death penalty and obviously I take into account their feelings."

Bailey described the family's wishes as one of several factors in offering Chisholm a plea deal for murder.

"That was an overwhelming factor for us," Bailey said of the family's request. "The defendant's age was a factor, his lack of a criminal history, and the fact that they were willing plea to murder and not seek parole for 25 years -- I think that was in the best interest of the state."

Chisholm and Temple were 19 at the time of the murder, both were denied youthful offender status.

Chisholm was sentenced to life in prison. Bailey strongly doubts he will ever be given parole when considering the facts of this case.

"He will die in prison," Bailey stated. "That's a shame for a wasted life, unfortunately we see that time and time again."

Bailey couldn't comment further on the disposition of Temple and Green's cases, as both are pending trial.

"What they did to that woman who was trying to earn a living, who came over to Alabama as a refugee from Katrina - starting her life over," Bailey said of Roche. "She had given these guys a break and this is how they paid her back."

Roche left behind a daughter, who was in her teens when Roche was murdered.

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